MindMatters

Confirmatory study to test the effectiveness of a programme to promote mental health in primary schools (collaborative project)

Project management:

Prof. Dr. Kevin Dadaczynski (HS Fulda study team)

PD Dr. Matthis Morgenstern (IFT North study team)

Collaborators:

Lisa Fischer, M.Sc. (Study Team HS Fulda)

Katharina Liegmann, M.A. (Study Team IFT North)

Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research

Duration: February 2020 to February 2023

Background

The morbidity spectrum in childhood and adolescence is increasingly characterised by behaviour-associated health problems and mental health problems. For this reason, increased efforts have been made in the past in the area of mental prevention and health promotion. The focus is primarily on schools, as children and young people are easy to reach in this setting and schools have a significant influence on the mental health of pupils through the way they are organised. MindMatters is a programme to promote mental health in primary and secondary schools, which is oriented towards the holistic approach of a good healthy school. It thus aims to increase the educational quality of schools, focuses on all relevant groups of people in and out of school, and addresses both the individual and the school conditions and processes.

Goal

Previous evaluation studies in Germany and abroad indicate that the MindMatters programme can bring about positive development in schools and among students. However, it is not known whether these effects can also be shown by means of an evidence-based study design and whether they can also be measured in the primary school environment. In order to expand the existing evidence base, a confirmatory, multicentre, cluster-randomised control group study will be conducted in Rhineland-Palatinate and Schleswig-Holstein.

Research questions

On the one hand, it will be investigated whether participation in MindMatters can improve the mental health and well-being of primary school students and teachers. On the other hand, it will be investigated whether MindMatters can improve school quality in terms of an appreciative, participative school culture and a changed learning and social climate.

Data basis

The target group of the evaluation project are pupils, teachers, parents and school administrators from primary schools in the federal states of Schleswig-Holstein and Rhineland-Palatinate. The participation of 20 schools per federal state is planned (10 intervention and 10 control schools). The schools in the intervention group will participate in the MindMatters intervention for 18 months. The schools in the control group will not receive any intervention. Surveys are planned at two measurement points, whereby the teachers, the school management and the parents of the students are surveyed via online survey or paper questionnaire and the students are surveyed on site with the help of tablet PCs. In addition, there will be a documentation of the implemented contents.